Around 13:45 GMT, the Dow Jones gained 0.45%, the Nasdaq index gained 0.67% and the broader S&P 500 index appreciated 0.60%.

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 had recorded its fifth session of gains in six trading days.

"The good dispositions displayed yesterday are intact this morning," Patrick O'Hare of Briefing.com said in a note. "Fears about the banking sector are calming further, which offers support to the entire market."

Wall Street "hints we're going to get by," said Quincy Krosby of LPL Financial. "It may not be fantastic, but it also won't be the catastrophe that some were predicting."

According to the analyst, the further weakening of the dollar also contributed to the shape of the indices, whether on the New York market or on foreign markets.

The VIX index, which measures market volatility, fell even further, to a three-week low.

In the bond market, rates continue to strengthen slowly, illustrating a decline in investors, more attracted to equities and commodities.

The yield on 10-year US government bonds stood at 3.57%, compared to 3.56% the previous day at the close.

After three weeks with its eyes on banks and bond yields, Wall Street is back to scrutinizing macroeconomic indicators and awaits the publication of the PCE price index for February, Friday.

On Thursday, new weekly jobless claims rose to 198,000, slightly above expectations but still below the symbolic threshold of 200,000.

For Patrick O'Hare, this "suggests that the labor market has not been shaken" so far by the banking crisis and the likely tightening of access to credit.

As a barometer of Wall Street confidence, regional banks continued to rise, such as First Republic (+1.89%), whose share price remains however nearly 90% below its pre-banking crisis level.

California's PacWest (+0.91%), as well as Western Alliance (+4.39%), based in Phoenix (Arizona), also pulled out of the game.

Already well oriented Wednesday after Micron's positive communication on improving market conditions, semiconductor manufacturers remained up, from AMD (+3.22%) to Intel (+1.54%), including Qualcomm (+1.65%).

Manchester United rose (+3.19%) after publishing a quarterly net profit, against a net loss for the same period of 2021, largely due to technical effects, with revenue down nearly 10% year-on-year.

Asset manager Charles Schwab fell (-2.64%) after a downgrade of recommendation from Morgan Stanley analysts, who are worried about the group's results, subject to significant withdrawals.

© 2023 AFP